Load Shedding Discount Program

If you are interested in signing up for this program please e-mail us or call 573-874-7325. Or send us a completed application.

What is Load Shedding?

Columbia Water & Light’s Load Shedding program reduces electric demand through voluntary curtailment of electric loads. As an incentive, credits are awarded to participating customers for the amount of load reduction they provide. Participation in the Load Shedding Program is open to all commercial and industrial customers who have demand levels of at least 250 kilowatts during July and August, except for customers on the High Load Factor or Thermal Storage electric rate. Customers with lower demand levels can participate by aggregating multiple commercial electric accounts. The total aggregated demand level must be 1,000 kilowatts or greater during July and August. Load Shedding customers can not participate in any other Columbia Water & Light electric demand response program.

Electric Load Curtailment

Peak electric loads result when the overall demand for electricity in the community increases to the point that it reaches record levels. Typically these occur on weekday afternoons on the hottest days of summer. When peak electric days occur, Load Shedding program participants are asked to reduce their electric demand for a three hour period, between 3:00 pm and 6:00 pm. Columbia Water & Light can not anticipate the number of load shedding days expected during any summer. Generally, an average summer will produce less than seven days in which load shedding is needed.

Notification

Columbia Water & Light notifies participating customers before noon on the day load shedding is requested by e-mail or fax. The notification method can be selected on the Load Shedding Agreement. The utility will also attempt to reach one of the company’s representatives by phone.

Load Shedding Incentives

Columbia Water & Light offers a credit of $36.00 per year for each kilowatt based on the average demand reduced during requested periods. Credits of $3.00 per month for each kilowatt shed during the requested periods are included in the monthly utility bill starting with the October billing and continuing for the next eleven months. A maximum of 50% of the customer’s normal base load demand, prior to load shedding, is allowed in load shedding incentives.

There will be no load shed credit for average load shed amounts that are zero kilowatts or a negative amount. There are no penalties for non-participation. However, Columbia Water & Light reserves the right to remove a customer from the program for continued non-participation. Customers may ask to be removed from the program at any time.

If Columbia Water & Light does not request any load be shed during the summer, the customer will receive 50% of the amount shed during the previous summer. If the customer is new to the program and does not have any load shedding history, a customer will receive a credit as follows:

Large General Service rate classification – credit of $75 each month for an individual customer

Large General Service aggregate load customers - a total of $150 credit will be issued to the customer account listed on the Load Shedding Agreement.

Industrial Service electric rate – credit of $150 for both single customer and aggregate load customers. The credit will be issued to the customer listed on the Load Shedding Agreement.

Program Registration

An initial Load Shedding Agreement must be submitted to Columbia Water & Light by April 15, in advance of the summer season. This deadline ensures that Columbia Water & Light will have time to install all necessary metering equipment before peak load days occur. To continue participation in following years, written notice must be submitted to Columbia Water & Light each year, by April 15. Participation in the Load Shedding program is conditional on Columbia Water & Light approval.

Metering

Columbia Water & Light will install the first demand recording meter needed for participation in this program. Aggregate load shedding customers will reimburse the utility for the cost of all additional meters. All load shed customers are responsible for installing and maintaining a telephone line for the meter(s). For cost estimates of the metering equipment for aggregate load shedding customers, please contact Columbia Water & Light. These meters collect electric demand data in half hour increments.

Calculating Load Shedding Amounts

The credits for the Load Shedding program are based on the electric demand reduction during the requested periods.

BASE USAGE DEMAND: For most customers the normal base load is calculated as an average of the three, half hour periods between 12:30 pm and 2:00 pm on the load shedding day. An alternate calculation for the normal base load is used for customers whose electric load is based primarily on air conditioning. Their normal base load is calculated by measuring electric use during the 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm period from prior non-load shedding days. The selection of what days to use for this determination are made through comparable variables such as weather conditions and day-of-the week comparisons.

DEMAND DURING LOAD SHEDDING: This is measured the same for all customers, being comprised of the average electric demand between 3:00 pm and 6:00 pm on the load shedding day.

LOAD SHEDDING REDUCTION: Each day’s load shedding reduction is the result of the base load demand minus the demand during the load shedding period. As an example, if the base load demand is measured at 1,080 KW and the demand during load shedding amount is 1,000 KW, the load shedding reduction for that day would be 80 KW (1,080 KW – 1,000 KW).

ANNUAL LOAD SHED: This is calculated after September and is used to identify the customer’s incentive for participating. The annual load shed amount is calculated by averaging load shedding reduction from all load shedding days during the season, with each day contributing equally to the average. For example, assuming four load shedding days have occurred and the load shedding reduction from each day was 80 KW, 0 KW, 100 KW and 20 KW respectively, the annual load shed amount would be 50 KW (80 KW + 0 KW +100 KW + 20 KW / 4 days). The annual load shed is used to calculate the load shed Incentive that will be awarded to the customer over the following year.

LOAD SHED INCENTIVE: Credits of $3.00 per month for each kilowatt shed during load shedding periods are included in the monthly utility bill starting with the October billing and continuing for the next eleven months. In the example above where the annual load shed reduction was 50 KW, $150.00 per month would be credited on each bill for 12 months, or an annual total of $1,800.00 ($150 X 12 months). If Columbia Water & Light does not request any load be shed during the summer, the customer will receive 50% of the amount shed during the previous summer. If the customer is new to the program and does not have any load shedding history, see the applicable incentive amount listed under the “Load Shedding Incentives” section.

Load Shedding program requirements and incentives are subject to change by the City of Columbia.